One foot in front of the other

 Great job, Tiff at www.tae.ca.
Tae Photography

Last week was busy, tough, tiring, sad.
Each and every day I awoke, thinking about the tragic loss of our pastor and friend, Andy Flatt. Our boys have had nightmares and I've been in tears every day. My husband has continued to lead our Team DuChene from answering difficult questions to working crazy hours to taking Seth to the park for the under-doggy swing he'd been asking for, for days. Jonathan went from reading scripture at Andy's emotional funeral, Friday to being MC at my cousin's beautiful wedding, Saturday to flying to Orlando for work, Sunday. And I managed to complete what seemed to be an impossible day, Friday - a 38.6 km run, Andy's funeral, treatment, driving to Chatham with the boys, then going to my cousin's wedding rehearsal. I am so thankful for the prayers, support and love from so many people. It really is amazing and I really feel it working. God is good, all the time. And I have no doubt that He'll continue to comfort Tina and the kids.
During times of mourning, I've often felt that getting through it is like picking up shattered pieces off the ground, one by one, slowly putting them back in place. And when talking with a friend from church, I said we must put one foot in front of the other. My husband, who served with Andy and 4 others on our leadership team, then added, "We may limp, but we'll get there". So very true.
Again, it's difficult to move onto other things but I will continue to do what I think I am here for. My purpose. Running has been such a relief during these tough times. I logged 150 km  with two solid workouts last week but backed off a bit on the cross-training. I am so grateful for Jonathan's amazing parents with whom I stayed while he was away for the weekend. Simply being able to eat breakfast while sitting and getting some help with my laundry from them made for a restful weekend. You can see why Jonathan is the amazing man that he is.
This week will be even less as I complete a much-needed, proper taper for Ottawa. Although the physical outlet has been great, I've been drained emotionally.
Like my cousin's beautiful wedding, I am looking forward to another uplifting weekend. Saturday evening will include a 10 km race at the Ottawa Race Weekend. The field is so speedy that I was left off the elite list. It's so great to have such high-calibre competition. After the race I hope to get in a few more km's to make it my long run for the week because there won't be time Sunday morning since I'm commentating the marathon with Mark Sutcliffe (Rogers)! Last Wednesday I did a sport nutrition/marathon mom presentation for the Port Dover Northshore group and really enjoyed it. The article will soon be found here. So again, I look forward to speaking about my experience as a marathoner. I just got the media sheets for the elite start lists and really need to start practising correct pronunciation of the Kenyan and Ethiopian runners. Yikes!
Although this year will be more of a business trip with me racing and commentating, and the rest of the family at home due to their activities, the Ottawa Race Weekend remains one of my favourites.
Hope you enjoyed the pictures above. Tiff, Tae Photography at www.tae.ca has done some amazing work. My 7 yr old and I were able see her "Now and Then" series a few months ago. Amazing work.

What A Weekend May Bring

I don't even know where to start with this post.
On Friday, my facebook and twitter status went from, "Wknd: 37 km run, hockey tourney, Mother's Day...#blessed" to telling 6 young children that our pastor had suddenly died. 
He took his own life.
He suffered from clinical depression.
Like I said in posting after the Boston bombing, it's my blog and I want to be real about myself, my life, and my faith. So, I will write about these difficult topics.
Although my mom died from cancer, a disease you could see, she also suffered from mental illness for years prior to that. It was rough.
Mental illness is so difficult to understand, even more difficult to experience as a friend or family member, and absolutely horrific to have. You can appear to have everything going for you, or struggle with a little or a lot but it does not matter when inflicted with this terrible disease. It still exists.
I applaud Clara Hughes' role in supporting mental health programs. She has clearly given back to the community in a phenomenal way.
Two days later we continue to sit with more questions than answers.
But we do know that life on earth is temporary and there is comfort in reading Revelation 21:4 - "He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."
We continued on with our daily activities this weekend. I got in a solid 40 km run with Clayton and James, Jonathan helped plan today's church service with the rest of the elders, Micah played 6 hockey games, and we had a simple Mother's Day dinner out. Our church has come together as a strong family and as an elder's wife, I've never felt more support. 
This week will again be busy with the usual activities, including a presentation to the North Shore Runners in Port Dover and another solid week of training. And as we grieve the loss of Andy and celebrate the beginning of a marriage, it will be another weekend with a range of emotions.

Plugging Along

Training continues to include weekly tempo runs on the treadmill. I get some solid runs on this machine!

Love having this bike in the basement. Even a good 10-20 minutes after running helps strengthen the legs, particularly the quads and hamstrings.

Track n Field day ...

reminds me of my childhood.

Two sweet girls helping with the Kenyan Kids Foundation yard sale. Hope to see them hand in hand in Kenya some day!

Stretching in the new gym at the Wayne Gretzky Sports Centre.

Recovery from my personal best time of 72:27 at the CDN Half Marathon Champs in Montreal went well, other than a compressed nerve on the back of one leg due to sitting for too long on the way home. No biggie since it didn't affect training. I logged a solid 150 km , which included a 35 km long run with James and Clayton in marvelous weather. I've been doing my track intervals with Ben Sayles, which has been great too since I've done speed on my own for so long. We can really push each other along. Crazy that I am twice his age! Not too much else to report, which is great. Uneventful training is the best; you want to get the work in with no problems. Physio with Sherri and massage with Cynthia is keeping me well-tuned. 

The next few weekends will be busy with a hockey tournament and wedding but Team DuChene will rise to the challenge to work together and get the jobs done.

kenyan style market fundraiser event - may 4, 2013

Like I've written, I would love to go to Kenya with my family (some day) to serve with Wesley Kipchumba Korir and Tarah Korir's Kenyan Kids Foundation. 
We are collecting gently-used items for the Kenyan-style market fundraiser event, May 4. 
Start spring cleaning! E.g. clothing, books, toys, accessories, household items, dvds, shoes, etc. 
My family will be taking items to St. Jacobs, May 3. Message me if interested.
Check it out:
http://www.kenyankidsfoundation.org/kenyan-marketplace-fundraiser-may-4th
http://observerxtra.com/2/living-here/a-real-cross-cultural-experience/

Thrilled and Blessed.

Thrilled and blessed with P.B. 72:27 and 2013 CDN Half Marathon Champion.

What a great weekend!

The Banque Scotia de Montreal Half Marathon, which also serves as the CDN Half Marathon Championship was my first race of the season with a proper taper after completing 150 km last week. I did two workouts on the track but they weren't terribly demanding, and it was nice to have a bit of a decrease in the km's to feel fresh in the week leading up to the race.

Friday morning, after getting the kids' lunches and backpacks loaded, my husband took the boys to school and Leah to my good friend Britanie's for the day. Fortunately my husband is often able to adjust his work schedule to meet my racing needs when given the time ahead to plan. I drove to the gotrain in Burlington then boarded the train at Union for Montreal. I sat with Rejean Chiasson, which was great because we got to chat about running, nutrition, and his recent training trip to Ethiopia and also get some work done. I've been getting a lot of interview and presentation requests lately, which has been great but require time to complete. I knew I'd have long periods of time in my traveling for races this spring so planned to use the time wisely. Thankfully via had wifi so I could go between my phone and laptop.

Friday evening I had dinner with Rachel Hannah and her boyfriend/coach Dave. It was great that they let me tag along as third wheel to a lovely Indian restaurant. Yes, Indian but we chose wisely, ate small portions and took the leftovers with us! A few others were going out later but we didn't connect. Saturday, Rachel and I went for an easy 35 min run, which included a few strides. Felt good. Then I got myself a Starbucks and headed back to the hotel for a bit more work, rest and relaxation. For lunch, Erin Burrett, Marilyn Arsenault and I enjoyed wraps at a local cafe downtown then I grabbed another Starbucks before going back to the room. I had my quick 20 min power nap then did a bit more work. The technical meeting was at 4 pm, which went well then a group of us headed out for a lovely dinner. Great pick, Kerri! I enjoyed a salad and some pizza (yes, I ate gluten and all was well). Marilyn and I were back in our hotel and in our pj's by 7:00 pm. Had a great sleep again that night.

Race day was bright and sunny with great temperatures. After relaxing on the cots for a while, Erin, Marilyn and I did a 20 min warmup together then got to the line for the 10am start. I was feeling good and ready to go. There was a 1 minute moment of silence in honor of the Boston Marathon events, which was very meaningful. Starting out, Dayna and I were together for a few km. I wasn't sure what she was going for, due to a nagging knee issue, but knew my plan and stuck to it. The first 2 km were 3:20/km exactly and I was 17:00 at 5km and 34:00 at 10 km. New PB for the 10 km! Shortly after that, I hooked up with a few guys, including fellow Saucony teammate, Terry Gehl. Then around the 15 km mark, I was ahead of them and on my own. A few times I wasn't sure where to go - I've had directional problems my entire life, and there were some fairly sharp turns but for the most part, the course was pretty good with just a bit of wind because of its location on the Ste-Helene Island & Notre-Dame Island. I faded perhaps a bit around 15-18 km but got another (3rd) gel going to fuel the tank. Coming through the finish was again, very special, like every other win. I just love hearing the people cheer and come together as a community. When asked about Tara Quinn-Smith's 72:09 Cdn record, I knew it was something that could possibly happen but to be honest, I am glad it didn't happen today. Rick and I are being very cautious with my training and racing after returning from injury, and know that there's still a lot of work to be done before Moscow, when I want to ultimately peak.

After a quick celebration, hug to Alan Brooks, a few photos, a 20 min cool down, and straightforward pee for doping before the awards we were back to the hotel for a quick shower and check out. My great roomie, Marilyn had to leave at 2pm for her flight and a group of us went for lunch on the way to the train. I got myself a large coffee, then got the laptop and phone going again once in my seat.

Rick was super pleased with my performance and has emailed me my plan for the week. We'll have a few heavy weeks then take it down again before the Ottawa Race Weekend 10 km. I'm already looking forward to it, especially because I've been asked do the colour commentating for the Marathon. I think I know what I'll be spending my time on when travelling by train in a few weeks. My pronunciation of Africa names is certainly not up to par. 

We're getting close to home and I look forward to seeing my husband and kids. 

Thrilled. Blessed.

4.15.13 Boston. Runners United to Remember.

I've quite enjoyed Boston Marathon Monday the past few years. Many times I've watched and become inspired, seeing the leaders dig deep, while completing my own treadmill tempo workout at the same time. The women usually finish around noon and that's when I have to get my kid (s) from the childcare so I too am pushing to get the job done. In 2005 I completed my own Boston Marathon in 3:00:46 - it was an amazing experience in so many ways.
I didn't get to watch Boston this year because the new gym has the treadmills facing the windows, which is great and there aren't yet any tvs or wifi. But, Coach Rick (on his 35th wedding anniversary!!) was texting me updates. 
After lunch, an ice bath and my quiet time of a nap and devotions, I returned to the internet to check results and read the post-race reports. It was Wesley Korir's Facebook status that said he and his family were in lock-down at the hotel due to two explosions. Like many, he said he was safe and praying.
Unfortunately not everyone was safe. I went to the tv and sure enough, it was a terrible scene.
Shortly after I had to get the kids from school. When I returned home, so did the tears as more details were revealed. I've never believed in hiding my feelings or the truth from my kids so I explained what was happening.
And like many, it hit me hard. My spouse, two boys and a girl have watched me finish numerous races like the Richard family who lost their dear 8 yr old boy. And I've worked hard to complete difficult marathons like the thousands of runners there. I was flooded with emotion. All I could say to the kids was that Heaven won't have anything terrible like this. And like many, I too wondered about our world.
Just last week I was interviewed by Ben Kaplan for a Canadian Running Magazine article on running and faith. I explained that my faith is honest, real and true. It's not about being religious or about a quick prayer at the start, "Oh God, please let me win". Our kids attend a Christian school, not to memorize scripture or be good people but to know and love God, understanding that they were created for a reason, His reason. So I started searching for those familiar verses that comfort us in troubling times. From this site, I found this:

"Some of us struggle with the problem of evil in the world. We do not understand how an all-powerful God, who is love, can allow such evil in the world. God's long-term plan of salvation takes this into account. There is a real devil who is out to destroy all humanity, and he uses human instruments to perpetrate death and destruction. Satan the Devil is out to thwart God's plan. But he has failed—and will yet utterly fail. We read in Revelation 20 that Satan will be cast into the great abyss at the beginning of the millennium, when Jesus Christ returns to establish the Kingdom of God on earth (Revelation 20:1-3)." ....and "We need to ask: "What is life all about? Why am I living? What is the ultimate destiny of mankind?".
God allows us to make choices and sadly, there are many who make evil, terrible choices. Proverbs 21:15 says, "Justice is a joy to the godly, but it terrifies evildoers."  Fortunately this  life on earth is temporary.
Many may cringe at this posting but hey, it's my blog and I want to be real about myself, my life, my faith.
Similar to other runners, it's been difficult to transition from talking about the devastating Boston events to our daily running routines. But it's been clear that the running community has become louder and stronger than ever before. The heart and passion seen in small, local running groups to the messages posted on nearly every major marathon site, is phenomenal.
 4.15.13 Boston. Runners United to Remember.

There are again many big races this weekend - from track events to the Toronto Yonge St 10 km, Vancouver Sun Run 10 km, and the London Marathon, it's a big one. Next weekend will be my next big race of the season. Running a strong 150 km this week with a track workout, tempo run, long run, two Chariot stroller runs, and not racing may give my legs a little extra bounce next weekend at the Banque Scotia 21k de Montréal.
I'm certainly hoping for another personal best and think I am in decent shape for it.  

Building

Another solid week of training complete. Nothing overly exciting to report but these are the weeks that really make you strong. The day in and day out with consistency in routine certainly builds a solid foundation.
With a day off, I was able to log 140 km in 6 runs, which included a 35 km long run, one track workout and one treadmill workout. This was my heaviest week so far and I couldn't feel better. Because I don't do doubles and due to the pool/childcare hours, many of my workouts are completed after 2 hours of cross training and warming up. It's not ideal to get the fastest track times or to feel fresh but it works for me. One workout this week was after a 12 km warm up and 1 hr in the pool! Hey, we all know that the majority of the work is at the end of the marathon, right?! Time in the pool, on the bike and elliptical has decreased as a result of the increased running and my body is adapting very well. I continue to see Sherri  weekly, at Essential Physiotherapy & Wellness, and am now seeing Cynthia weekly, at Therapeutic Massage Counsel. They are both consistent in their observations so the complimentary care between them is great. It's a really good balance.
We are between hockey seasons and I had a sick kid this week so life was a bit slower, which was nice for recovery. But spring hockey will start, track will continue, taxes need to be completed, my husband will travel for work, and the request for speaking engagements and interviewing is on the rise. So, I continue to prioritize and pace myself to keep the juggling act steady.
This week will see another increase in volume and intensity in training, which will be great preparation for my upcoming race in two weeks, the Banque Scotia de Montreal/Canadian Half Marathon Championships, April 28th.
April is an exciting month for Canadian road racers with Boston, Brighton, Rotterdam, Harry's Spring Run Off, Vancouver Sun Run, Montreal Half, London, Toronto Yonge St, etc. Exciting!

April 2012. Leah just finished nursing, two weeks before I left to run the Rotterdam Marathon.

April 2013. One year ago today, I ran the Rotterdam Marathon. Leah has certainly grown.